Recipes to celebrate the drama of the blood orange

By 9Honey | Kitchen| 2 years ago

With their bloody red flesh, pink juice and short season - embrace the drama of the blood orange

The blood orange season is short, so make the most of it with a selection of recipes that will have you covered from entree through to dessert. From granita to ceviche, let the vibrant reds and pinks that are the drama of this late winter/early spring fruit take centre stage!

People take citrus fruit for granted in my opinion. The regular-Joe orange is available all year round, as are lemons and limes, so it is with great excitement that the blood orange season is on our doorstep – but only for a short time.

The world’s biggest producers of this tremendous fruit come from Italy and the United States but thankfully Australia is getting its own fair share of the blood orange market, care of the perfect weather in NSW. Apart from its name, I love everything about this fruit – tart, tangy and beautifully vibrant; its juice is the perfect morning kickstart. The reason they aren’t available year round is that they are temperamental little things, fussy about the temperature they require to give us that beautiful red flesh.

I’ve been using blood oranges for a while now in ice-blocks and granitas and straight-up juice (with a dash of gin on the odd occasion) but the first thing that came to mind this year was poultry. For centuries Europeans have been using citrus with meats, particularly fatty meats such as pork and duck, as the tart juice cuts through the unctuous sticky fat. So with skin-on chicken, roasting blood oranges and artichokes works a treat.

The outer leaves of the artichoke are tough so stick to the middle ‘heart’. It's a beautiful vegetable, but a little thankless in its givings considering its size. Feel free to add more if you are particularly fond of them. Another vegetable which works well n this dish is broccolini, just ensure you brush generously with olive oil.

Cured fish is a thing of wonder. It can be more convenient than driving to the shops and buying a burger. You can have lunch or dinner ready with a few squeezes of a lime after adding some herbs and spices. Let it sit for as little or as long as you like and there you have it. It requires little more effort then turning the key in the ignition of your car. But the origin of the fish you are using is more of an issue to be mindful of than the amount of time it takes.

I have recently come across a smartphone app that helps you choose your fish responsibly. Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide came about because a lot of us are conscientious about what we put in our mouths these days, whether it's sourced from the land, sea or sky. And our seafood is depleting at a rapid rate. We all know what happened to dodo burgers. So using this handy tool lets you know what seafood is in abundance, what's not in great supply and what you should absolutely stay away from.

When I made this dish, I was at the market looking for kingfish. Everyone seems to be using kingfish for ceviche and curing, aren't they? But the app told me to wary. Wild-caught kingfish is not ideal and sea cages are absolutely a no-no. Using the tools now available what's a "good" fish and what's "bad", so I was able to look for fish that was good for me and the environment. Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide is also available in print.